Keir Starmer UN speech – live: PM meets with Donald Trump for first time at two-hour dinner
Sir Keir Starmer met Donald Trump for the first time as the two men sat down for a two-hour dinner meeting in New York on Thursday night.
The PM and Foreign Secretary David Lammy met with the former president before flying back to the UK.
Topics discussed included the importance of retaining the close partnership between the UK & US, according to Downing Street.
Earlier, speaking at the United Nations General Assembly, the prime minister urged Israel and Hezbollah to agree a ceasefire and for the two sides to “step back from the brink”.
In a speech to world leaders in New York, Sir Keir said: “I call on Israel and Hezbollah: Stop the violence, step back from the brink.”
The 79th UN summit comes as the Middle East teeters on the brink of all-out conflict and the bloody war in Ukraine grinds on.
It follows an intervention at the UN Security Council where he tore into Russia over its actions in Ukraine, saying Vladimir Putin was treating his own citizens as “bits of meat to fling into the grinder” in the conflict.
Key Points
Two million older people in England have unmet social care needs, says Age UK
Some two million older people in England are living without the social care help they need, according to estimates a charity has branded “deeply worrying”.
Many are likely to be struggling with things including getting out of bed and washing, Age UK said, warning that not getting help with these basic tasks increases their risk of falls and serious injury.
The charity said its analysis of data from the latest English Longitudinal Study of Ageing and Office for National Statistics (ONS) population figures had led it to an estimate of two million people aged 65 and over who are living with unmet needs for care and support.
This is up from its previous estimate of 1.6 million last year.
The latest figure includes hundreds of thousands of people who are unable to complete basic self-care tasks and are getting either no help or help that does not meet their needs, Age UK said.
The charity’s analysis also suggested that, of the approximately 11 million people aged 65 and over in England, around 10 per cent have difficulty dressing, and six per cent have difficulty getting in and out of bed.
It said while the number of people aged over 75 has grown by almost a fifth since 2017, fewer older people have been receiving long-term care through their local authority over this period.
A major review of the health service published this month described the state of social care as “dire” and noted the “profound human cost and economic consequences” of a long under-resourced area of healthcare.
The report by independent peer Lord Darzi was focused on the NHS but said a growing gap between people’s needs and those getting publicly funded social care in England is placing “an increasingly large burden on families and on the NHS”.
Watch: Kemi Badenoch explains why she feels ‘sympathy’ for Labour MPs
Kemi Badenoch explains why she feels ‘sympathy’ for Labour MPs
Kemi Badenoch has suggested she feels sympathy for Labour MPs because they “had no idea what they were getting themselves into”. During an appearance on LBC, the Conservative leadership hopeful discussed the stark difference between being in opposition and being in government. “We’re not in charge anymore, we lost the election, but we understand what it is like,” Ms Badenoch explained. “Sometimes I actually feel very sympathetic for Labour MPs and ministers, because they had no idea what they were getting themselves into and you can see they’re making a horlicks of so much.” Ms Badenoch went on to suggest she would be a strong communicator if elected as the new Tory leader.
COMMENT | What does the future of The Spectator look like with ‘arch schemer’ Gove at the helm?
If he resists the temptation to simply preach the gospel of his friend and proprietor Sir Paul Marshall, the former Tory minister may find that he thrives in the role, writes Alan Rusbridger:
Watch: Who will be the next leader of the Conservatives?
Who will be the next leader of The Conservatives?
Following on from their election defeat and Rishi Sunak departing, the Conservatives have been locked in a leadership campaign to pick the next party leader. Robert Jenrick, Kemi Badenoch, James Cleverly and Tom Tugendhat are the final four vying to win the leadership and return a fractious party back to power from Kier Starmer’s Labour. But who will win and who’s most likely to succeed? Kate Devlin and John Rentoul cast an eye over the field of candidates and pick who they think is next face Kier Starmer at the dispatch box in Westminster.
Starmer and Palestinian president urge immediate ceasefire in Middle East
Sir Keir Starmer has been busy meeting world leaders at the annual United Nations General Assembly ahead of his keynote speech today.
He held bilateral talks last night with Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas as Israel’s war on Gaza continues.
Both leaders have condemned the attacks of 7 October and agreed on the need of an immediate ceasefire across the Middle East.
In a read out, No 10 said: “He also highlighted the civilian death toll in Gaza since then, with 41,000 killed and 100,000 injured, plus 70 per cent of infrastructure devastated.
“The prime minister agreed that the loss of civilian life had been intolerable.”
Downing Street added: “The president and prime minister also condemned the increase in settler violence and settlement activity there has been on the West Bank.”
What was announced in Starmer’s Labour conference speech?
Sir Keir Starmer’s address to the 2024 Labour Party Conference saw him promise to rebuild Britain “brick by brick” after fourteen years of Tory government, telling conference delegates his government will create a “Britain that belongs to you”.
But what exactly was announced? We look at the key developments from the prime minister’s speech below.
Starmer wraps up 2-hour dinner with Donald Trump
Sir Keir Starmer has finished a two-hour dinner meeting with Donald Trump in New York, according to reports.
The PM and Foreign Secretary David Lammy met with the former president before flying back to the UK.
Topics discussed included the importance of retaining the close partnership between the UK & US, according to Downing Street.
Sir Keir Starmer says he wants to “reset” the UK’s relationship with the EU.
Sir Keir Starmer will visit Brussels as he steps up efforts to “reset” the UK’s relationship with the European Union.
The Prime Minister wants to repair the damage caused by years of Brexit wrangling in an effort to boost trade and security co-operation.
European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen revealed that Sir Keir would visit Brussels next week after the pair met in New York.
Sir Keir has met a string of EU leaders since taking office and has spoken about his “ambitious” plans for a new relationship.
Sir Keir said: “I want to reset our relationship with the EU and make Brexit work for the British people.”
He said he was “looking forward to visiting Brussels next week to start discussions” with the commission president.
Tory leadership candidate Labour most fears revealed
Senior aids have revealed that Labour wants to “avoid” James Cleverly as future Tory leader.
According to the i newspaper, Downing Street officials said it was the former home secretary who they would least like to win the contest.
A Labour party figure said: “I think Cleverly could be a problem. He sounds quite reasonable,” a No 10 aide added: “James Cleverly – that’s who we want to avoid.”
Another government aide said Kemi Badenoch does not represent a threat as the party is “not sure she’d take our votes”.
£10bn data centre investment shows UK ‘open for business’, says Starmer
A £10 billion US investment in a new artificial intelligence data centre will create 4,000 jobs in the UK, the government has announced.
The deal with private equity giant Blackstone will create Europe’s biggest AI data centre in Blyth, Northumberland.